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Israeli minister to attend conference in UAE this weekend
Israel’s Infrastructure Minister Silvan Shalom will travel to Abu Dhabi today to attend a renewable energy conference, becoming only the second Israeli minister to visit the United Arab Emirates (UAE), a country with which Israel has no formal diplomatic relations.
Shalom will attend the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) Fourth Assembly during Abu Dhabi’s Sustainability Week. In January 2010, then Energy and Water Minister Uzi Landau attended a similar conference in Abu Dhabi. Israel is a full member of the 123-member IRENA forum. Also joining the Israeli delegation is Hevel Eilot Regional Council Chairman Udi Gat, whose region in the very south of Israel is well-known for pioneering the utilisation of renewable energy.
This will be the first Israeli delegation to visit the UAE since the assassination of Hamas military operative Mahmoud al-Mabhouh in Dubai. Israel neither confirmed nor denied involvement in the killing but Dubai subsequently banned Israelis from entering the country and diplomatic relations were strained between Israel and the UK, Ireland and Australia after forged passports were alleged to have been used in the operation.
A spokesman for Shalom said, “If Israel is a full member of IRENA and that takes place in Abu Dhabi, it’s inconceivable that we wouldn’t be able to go to that assembly… At the end of the day we are going there with Israeli passports.”
Last year, Israel Finance Ministry documents detailing the expenditure of the Foreign Ministry indicated that an Israeli diplomatic mission had been opened in the Persian Gulf between 2010 and 2012. However, the government would not reveal the identity of the country in question. In addition, in May 2010, Israel’s then trade minister Binyamin Ben Eliezer attended an international economic conference in Qatar.
It is thought that many of the Gulf States, which are largely Sunni dominated, share Israel’s concerns over Shi’ite Iran’s nuclear ambitions and military strength. However, Qatar has also become a significant financial supporter of Hamas in the Gaza Strip.